The water level control structure is used to maintain a water depth of around 4 feet over the winter and lets the water drain out during the summer growing season. The adjacent excavated areas collect water from normal rainfall and provide fresh water for the animals. 2002 is the first season for the habitat water containment area and a lot of this is what we have been told as rainfall this year has been far less than normal. The unusually low rainfall has made us rather skeptical, hopefully over this winter we will see some improvement.